I have read other Rainbow Fish books with my children and while we have enjoyed others, this was not our favorite. Rainbow Fish and the Storyteller is a take on The Boy Who Cried Wolf, with a focus on exaggeration rather than lying.

What was a miss for me was the ending of the book. After finding a great resolution to Humberts' exaggeration issue, his imagination gets in the way during his storytelling time and the other fish laugh at him until he is red in the face. After the embarrassing encounter, Humbert collects himself enough to continue on with his storytelling and the fish wind up loving his tales but the embarrassment, or how Humbert overcame it, is never mentioned again. As an adult, I had to re-read the last sentence for the sentence to make sense and was left scratching my head why a children's book was written this way. "It was not long before none of the fish ever wanted to miss a single storytelling time with Humbert."

Rainbow Fish and the Storyteller is a take on the story of the boy who cried wolf. The story has a great message for children, but the way it was presented was a miss for me. The writing is long and the font size small. My song did not stay engaged with this story because of the writing style. He has loved other rainbow fish stories in the past. The illustrations are beautiful and engaging.

"Rainbow Fish and the Storyteller" is a new adaptation of a classic text, shifting the thematic focus to teach a new social skill to young children. In this tale, the Rainbow Fish meets Humbert, who tells wild stories that interest and confuse the fish. The fish aren't entirely sure what they should believe after a few of his tales. This book explains the importance of honesty and not over-exaggerating to draw attention. On the opposite end, it also explores the importance of checking-in on others, no matter what background that you have with them. Children are able to see both perspectives, which is critical when establishing a strong foundation for social-emotional skills. The story was simple to follow, which will benefit K-2 readers. Additionally, the illustrations add beautiful fish that capture the iconic style of the original. At times, I felt that the illustrations for Humbert's stories didn't clearly denote if the event was occurring in real time or as a thought, yet this did not impact my understanding of the text as a whole. Overall, this text is a wonderful addition to a social-emotional curriculum where students have familiarity with the original story!

This is an adorable book! A classic character Rainbow Fish in a new adventure.

When he meets Humbert, who tells all kinds of stories to scare the other, Rainbow Fish doesn’t know what to do. Rainbow Fish and his friends come up with a way to get him to stop. But does he?

I can’t wait to read/review more from Marcus Pfister.

Rainbow Fish is a big hit in my house with my young children, so naturally I was excited to see a new Rainbow Fish book! The Storyteller is similar to The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Humbert keeps telling Rainbow Fish about terrible threats to the fish community that all turn out to be lies. Once the fish address the issue, Rainbow Fish feels bad for him. Humbert is sad and lonely. All he wants is attention, so Rainbow Fish comes up with an idea to better channel his storytelling energy in a positive way. The ending with its realistic actionable solution to all Humbert's lies is perfect. There are children who have no idea how to better seek attention from friends or adults other than lying. This book will help give a solution to a problem.

Thank you, North South Books Inc, for the advance review copy.

I like the concept. However, I feel the young readers of the particular age group might fine the reading along a bit difficult consider it the font and the size used, also the presentation could have been way better.

A decent young readers' book.

Stars 4.5
I really loved Rainbow Fish and have fond memories of reading it to my children. So I was happy to see a new book. In this story, Rainbow Fish meets another fish, Humbert. He likes telling tall tales that scare other fish. He soon finds himself alone after "crying wolf" too many times. This book teaches a valuable lesson that lies are better left for storytelling. The illustrations are colorful and eye-catching. This would be a lovely addition to any library.


Thank you, NetGalley and NorthStar Books, for providing me with a digital ARC for an honest review.

I love the Rainbow Fish book. I really enjoyed reading this. I look forward to reading it to my children and my students.

Full disclosure: I received a free digital copy of this from Netgalley for reviewing purposes, though I’ll try to keep my review as unbiased as possible as I’m basically a professional book reviewer now.


Humbert, a newcomer to The Rainbow Fish saga, will do anything for attention, even if it means lying and gaining the distrust of his fish peers in doing so. He does this over and over again, each fabrication becoming more outlandish and unbelievable than the last until none of his fish buddies believe him anymore. Sound familiar? I thought it did too. But no, it’s not a rip-off of The Boy Who Cried Wolf. I was pleasantly surprised at the happy twist ending to what I felt certain would be a cautionary tale warning of the dangers of lying that would end in poor Humbert’s untimely and gruesome demise (no spoilers though!)

I don’t have children, nor do I care for or look after any. That said, I still think I would have loved this as a kid. I have fond memories of the first book in The Rainbow Fish series. In fact, it’s one of the very few books that I remember genuinely liking as a young child, and I’m certain that children today will feel the same about this addition to the series.

I am a Rainbow Fish lover and use it for many lessons in the classroom! Can’t wait to adapt this new story into the classroom for my students!

Cute addition to the beloved "The Rainbow Fish"! I enjoyed the story it was intended to teach children. Thanks you for the opportunity to read and review

Rainbow Fish and the Storyteller features the story of the (famous!) Rainbow Fish and another fish, Humbert. His outlandish stories are reminiscent of politics and the news today, made up just to scare the other fish. I liked the message of the book, that lies should be reserved for storytelling! Beautiful illustrations